Clube Desportivo de Tondela, from the small town of Tondela in the Viseu region of central Portugal, were playing in non-league football just four short years ago.
Following promotion to the Segunda Liga in 2012 they won that league last season and joined the big boys in the Primeira Liga. No one gave them a chance and after twenty-six games they were cast adrift at the bottom of the table having won only three games.
Then at the beginning of April a small miracle took place.
They won away at mighty FC Porto and followed it up with victory over fellow strugglers União da Madeira.
Defeat at SC Braga was a set-back but at the weekend they picked up another three points at Vitoria de Setúbal thanks to Pica’s 86th minute strike.
Now only three points from safety and with three games to go it could all go down to the wire. Their last game of the season is against another troubled team, Académica.
Leaders Benfica recorded their seventeenth win in eighteen games at Rio Ave.
The Eagles were made to struggle but super sub Raúl Jiménez was their saviour. Two weeks ago the young Mexican came off the bench to score the decisive goal against Académica and once again the ex-Atlético Madrid striker repeated the feat.
Midway through the second-half Jiménez replaced Kostas Mitroglou. Six minutes later a miss hit clearance from Vilas Boas evaded Cássio and hit the crossbar, with Jiménez nodding in the rebound.
Sporting took an early lead against União da Madeira when Teó Gutiérrez headed home after seven minutes.
The Estádio José Alvalade was rocking once more ten minutes later when Marvin Zeegelaar’s cross was volleyed in by João Mário inside the box to make it 2-0.
União da Madeira almost got back into the game ten minutes after the interval when Rúben Semedo’s defensive intervention nearly resulted in an own goal as the ball coasted across the face of the goal.
Sporting remain two points behind Benfica and face a tricky visit to FC Porto on Saturday evening.
FC Porto, with no chance of challenging for the title, are going through troubled times and early indications were that lowly Académica would add to their woes when Pedro Nuno put the hosts ahead with their first shot of the game via a free-kick in the twenty-fifth minute.
Ten minutes later the visitors were level when 18-year-old Rúben Neves brilliantly looped a volley into the top corner using the side of his foot.
Yacine Brahimi found a second-half winner for the Dragons and with Paços de Ferreira defeating SC Braga 1-0 it confirmed third place and qualification for the final round of Champions League qualifiers next season.